A Cornish Secret by Emma Burstall
Published: 1st June 2018
Publisher: Head of Zeus
Pages: 331
Available on Kindle
Rating: 4/5
Blurb
Be
careful what you kiss for...
Esme Posorsky
is an enigma. For as long as people can remember, she has been part of
community life in the quaint Cornish fishing village of Tremarnock, but does
anyone really know her? She is usually to be found working in her
pottery studio or at home with her beloved cat, Rasputin. But when an old
school friend turns up with a secret from the past, nothing will ever be the
same again.
Meanwhile
teenager, Rosie, is excited to find a bottle washed up on Tremarnock beach with
a message from a former German prisoner of war. While the rest of the village
is up in arms about a new housing development, she sets out to find him. Little
does she know, however, that her discovery will unleash a shocking chain of
events that threatens to blow her family apart. Tremarnock may look like a cosy
backwater, but some of its residents are about to come face-to-face with tough
decisions and cold reality…
Review
A Cornish Secret is Emma Burstall’s forth book based in the
tranquil Cornish village of Tremarnock. I’ve loved all the covers of her books
but this one has to be my favourite, how cosy does that cat look at in that
window with that gorgeous view, I’m very jealous.
In A Cornish Secret, three storylines are interwoven into
the book and at first, I wasn’t sure how everything was going to come together to
form a cohesive plot, but it does at the end making for a very enjoyable read.
One of the background characters from previous books Esme
becomes the focus in this book. After more than twenty years she’s being
reunited with her old school friend Caroline as the two embark on a walking
holiday along the Cornish coast. Esme kept her true feelings for her friend under
wraps for most of her life but when the two meet is obvious her feelings are
mutual, can Esme finally find some happiness being herself? I loved having Esme
as one of the main characters, she’s been mentioned in previous books but
always seemed a solitary character and a bit flakey, this book explains her
history and gives her glimpse at happiness. My only gripe was the storyline
between her and Caroline came to an abrupt end with no real solution. I hope
this means there is another book coming as I’d love to know if these two manage
to work things out.
Alongside this storyline the majority of the Tremarnock
villagers are forming a protest group to try and save their local playground
from developers. This created some great scenes in the book as residents form a
makeshift campsite on the playing field which really highlight the community
spirit which has flown throughout all of Emma Burstall’s Tremarnock books. I
loved the description of Loveday and Jesse’s treehouse and Audrey’s extravagant
marquee and all the camaraderie with the singing round the campfire on a night.
As most of the villagers unite Liz, a main character from previous
books notices her husband Robert is becoming more and more distant from herself
and from overall village life, burying himself in his work. When her daughter
Rosie finds a message in a bottle down on the beach Liz throws herself into
helping trace the writer and this only leads to more trouble.
I loved been back in Tremarnock as it feels like I’m getting
to know these characters well now after four books with them. My favourite is
still Liz and I’m glad this book highlighted that even though you’re married
you still need to work at your relationship to keep it sparkling. Emma Burstall’s
did a great job of weaving two of the three storylines together but I wish Esme’s
was more complete, perhaps in a future book? I’d also love her to write
something about Audrey as feel there’s more we need to know about this character.
Overall I found A Cornish Secret a joy to read, it’s the perfect
summer read and it will make you long to be in Cornwall just like I do now.
Emma Burstall has shown yet again she can create an entertaining story within
the beautiful village of Tremarnock with characters that soon feel like friends
whether you’ve read the previous books or not.
Thank you so much to Head of Zeus for sending me a copy to
review and for inviting me to be part of the blog tour.
About the Author
Emma Burstall
was a newspaper journalist in Devon and Cornwall before becoming a full time
author. Tremarnock, the first novel in her series set in a delightful
Cornish village, was published in 2015 and became a top-10 bestseller.
Follow Emma
Twitter: @EmmaBurstall
Facebook: @emmaburstallauthor
Buy links:
Amazon: mybook.to/ACornishSecret
Kobo: http://bit.ly/2L3ISWI
iBooks: https://apple.co/2M5a1cy
Google Play: http://bit.ly/2JxvYSX
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Twitter: @HoZ_Books
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